Saturday, April 22, 2017

Roku UK Channel Store - Weekly RoundUp #215

Hi, everyone !!

It's been a quiet week, in terms of Roku-specific news stories, so I'm going to start this post with a few updates for items of Roku-related news which have featured in previous 'Weekly RoundUp' articles that were published via this blog in recent weeks...

Firstly in respect of the 'Deezer' channel for Roku devices I'm very happy to report that, after hearing back from Bianca Spada (Global Head of Social Media at Deezer) on Thursday 20th April 2017, with the promise they would "...look into it ASAP", the issues with the app have been addressed and Roku users can once again enjoy the fantastic opportunities for music discovery that 'Deezer' affords them. Having had salt rubbed into the wounds left by the non-functioning channel, thanks to ads on TV for the "Flow" aspect of the 'Deezer' music streaming service just a few days prior to that, it was really pleasing to see them address the problem so swiftly. My faith in 'Deezer' has thankfully now been restored and, as Roku users, we can all get back to streaming music from 'Deezer' on our devices! :-)

Another app which has been problematic for UK Roku users in recent weeks is 'BBC iPlayer' and, while I was unaffected by the issues on my Roku players, I know that some people have been beset with a number of issues pertaining to the Catch-Up service from the BBC on their Roku devices and NowTV Boxes. One thing I am able to confirm, having performed a manual check for new software on my Roku devices recently, is that there has been another update to the 'BBC iPlayer' channel for UK Roku devices. Hopefully, this further update will now fix those few odd issues that remained with the app for those affected... however, since I'm one of the lucky ones whose devices are still running smoothly with 'BBC iPlayer', it will be up to the individuals concerned to check the outcome on their own streaming players. Having done so, if one of you could be so kind as to leave a comment for the benefit of others (at the foot of this page) it would (I'm sure) be very much appreciated! ;-) :-)

Moving away from problems with apps that are already on UK Roku devices... to issues with those that have yet to be added, i.e. the 'TVPlayer' channel for UK Roku devices which (despite my being told, "...we have everything in place", on Thursday 13th April 2017) remains absent from the line-up of channels available to UK Roku users via the "Official" Roku UK Channel Store. I'm not sure if I have ruffled too many feathers by asking for further updates on the situation, but 'TVPlayer' has not responded to any of my tweets this past week and all I could get from Roku Support was that they had "No information" about whether the 'TVPlayer' app was currently caught-up in their "approval" process. In any case, with no sign of a 'TVPlayer' app for UK Roku devices at the time of publishing this post, it is clear that I will not get to watch "Genius" via the 'National Geographic' channel (that is part of the 'TVPlayer Plus' package) on Sunday evening at 9pm, as I had originally hoped. With any luck, the 'TVPlayer' app for UK Roku devices will be published sometime during the coming week, so that I can (at least) enjoy the programme on "catch-up", assuming it's available to stream!?!! :-|

Before I get on with the list of all the latest Roku channel additions there have, as in most weeks of late, been some Netflix-related announcements which may be of interest to those who (like me) are currently subscribed to the service. Rather than go into detail here, I'll simply provide you with some links to the relevant articles so you can read them (or not) according to your own preference. The first concerns the imminent approach of a major milestone in terms of numbers for Netflix subscribers worldwide... with an article, published by Multichannel, that reveals 'Netflix' are steadily approaching the one hundred million marker in terms of their registered users. The other announcement concerns a new animated series coming to 'Netflix' which, according to this press release from the media centre, will see 'Carmen Sandiago' return to our screens in 2019. Granted it is still a fair way off but, for fans of the series, I'm sure it'll be a welcome addition to the 'Netflix' streaming catalogue when it comes! ;-) :-)

Anyway, as has often been the case of late... the current list of new additions (once again) starts with another channel that, despite being new to UK Roku devices, is not listed in the "New" category (i.e. genre) of the Roku UK Channel Store. Blogging specifically about Roku streaming devices & other Roku-related matters, I love discovering apps like this one... because they illustrate precisely why it's worth reading the 'Weekly RoundUp' posts on my blog. Any Roku users who simply rely on whatever they see listed under the "New" category in the built-in channel store of their streaming media players (to identify the latest apps for UK Roku devices) risk missing-out on channels like this altogether. Other websites offering Roku channel listings will base their contents on the Roku USA Channel Store, which means they also include apps that are unavailable to Roku UK users. So, if you really want to know what's available to UK Roku users channel-wise... be sure to read this blog every week! ;-) :-)

However, before I run through the new channels... a reminder that UK Roku users are still subject to restrictions (imposed by Roku) and (bizarrely) remain unable to access the channel descriptions from the web store on the Roku (USA) website. That said, the majority of text in those web listings can also be found within the individual descriptions from the built-in "Channel Store" (accessed via "Streaming Channels" from the main menu) on all Roku devices and, together with the associated screenshots (where available), should give a pretty good indication of what those channels are about.

My advice to any UK-based readers of this blog is to ignore the links below (and to the left of) each channel icon shown here and (instead) rely on the link to the right (below each channel icon) which (where available) will redirect you to an 'Roku Guide' review for additional details on that channel. As it stands, the links below (and to the left of) each icon are (currently) only of use to readers of this blog from the USA. This means that Roku users from the other "supported" regions of the world (i.e. Ireland, Canada, France and Mexico) are, like those of us in the UK, unable to browse the Roku Web Channel Store - which for now (at least) remains an exclusive privilege of Roku users in the USA. :-(

Hopefully Roku will (one day) wake-up to the fact that improving the experience for users in "other" Roku "regions" is just as important as it is for those who buy & use their products in the U.S. and denying access to the Roku website does not help the end-user experience for those of us (outside the USA) who wish to browse the web channel store. Meanwhile, that which Roku (apparently) doesn't want UK Roku users to see on their website (i.e. the list of new channels) is regularly summarised on this blog in my 'Weekly RoundUp' posts. So, without further ado, here's my 'Weekly RoundUp' of all the new Roku channels released between the 16th and the 22nd of April 2017:-

***FILED UNDER: "SPORTS" in the Roku UK Channel Store WHEN FIRST RELEASED***

PLEASE NOTE:- That, while this 'Total Access TNA Wrestling' channel is FREE-TO-ADD to your Roku device(s) and does permit you to browse the entire library of content without paying, you will need to create an account and subscribe to the service in order to view any videos on this channel. If you like what you see, and there really is LOTS OF GREAT CONTENT for wrestling fans among the on-demand selections available (never mind the extra LIVE STREAM for weekly programming), you can easily create an account and register from within the 'Total Access TNA Wrestling' channel. Just click on any of the on-demand videos & then follow the on-screen instructions to start watching! :-)

ALSO:- It's worth remembering that you can enjoy all the new episodes of IMPACT Wrestling via Spike TV (available on Freeview Channel 31, Freesat Channel 141, Virgin Media Channel 154, and Sky Channel 160) with broadcasts on Thursday nights (from 9pm to 11pm) as well as another opportunity for fans of IMPACT Wrestling to watch on Saturday night / Sunday morning (which is broadcast from midnight until 2am). In addition to their 'Over-The-Air' (OTA) broadcasts, and the various viewing options within the Roku channel for 'Total Access TNA Wrestling', there are other ways to access IMPACT WRESTLING content whenever your TV and/or Roku device is not close at hand. For example, to watch 'Total Access TNA Wrestling' on-the-go, simply take advantage of one of their apps for mobile devices... which are FREE TO DOWNLOAD via the links shown below:-

Other ways by which to stream content from 'Total Access TNA Wrestling', can be found among the information on their official website and, in case of any technical or payment / billing related issues with 'Total Access TNA Wrestling', there is a contact form online through which to get in touch! ;-)

PLEASE NOTE:- That, as with the 'Total Access TNA Wrestling' channel (above), while this channel from 'Lankaflix' is FREE-TO-ADD to your Roku device(s) and does permit you to browse the entire library of content without paying, you will need to create an account and subscribe to the service in order to view any videos on it. Again, if you like what you see, you can easily create an account and register from within the 'Lankaflix' channel on your Roku device. Just click on any of the on-demand videos & then follow the on-screen instructions to start watching unlimited movies, tv shows and tele dramas, short films, music videos, plus fascinating documentaries from Sri Lanka! :-)

ALSO:- In addition to the monthly subscription option at a cost of $4.99 per month (outlined above), there is also an ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION whereby you pay $50.00 PER YEAR for the service... which is the equivalent to getting TWO MONTHS FREE over the entire subscription period. If the annual payment option seems too big of a commitment, there's also a LIMITED-TIME OFFER from 'Lankaflix' that will get you AN EXTRA 25% DISCOUNT OFF YOUR FIRST THREE MONTHS just by USING PROMO CODE:AWURUDU17 AT CHECK-OUT when you buy your subscription.

ADDITIONAL VIEWING OPTIONS:- As well as enjoying the videos found within the 'Lankaflix' channel for Roku devices, there are other ways to access their library of Sri Lankan content whenever your TV and/or Roku device are not close at hand. Just like the 'Total Access TNA Wrestling' channel (above) you can also watch 'Lankaflix' on-the-go, simply by installing one of their companion apps for mobile devices... which (once again) are FREE TO DOWNLOAD via the links shown below:-

Other ways by which to stream content from 'Lankaflix', can be found among the additional details found on their official website and, in case of any technical difficulties when using the 'Lankaflix' channel, there is a Roku-specific Help Page online through which you can get additional help! ;-)